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Hi, I am a BMW evangelist, I have had at least 14 BMWs in the last 20 years, but this year, even though my personal finances are OK, I have some real estate investments that are worth 25% of buying price, I am negotiating with banks doing short sales, in the meantime, my credit is bad, and even though I have had at least 10 leases with BMW FS, all paid well and right on time, and still have one on a 2008 550i, BMW will not give me credit, not even on a pre-paid lease.

So, my wife's SLK lease is up in 6 weeks, and I need to buy a replacement, I am looking into a new or CPO 3 series, planning to use it until my credit is back, what model will be easier to unload (sell) in the short term with minimal loss? A sedan or a coupe? New or CPO?>>>>

CPO definately. Let somebody else eat 50% of the resale the first two years. I'd guess that a sedan would be easier to offload.

That being said, buying a new (to you) car when you have bad credit and seriously depreciating assets really sounds like a bad idea. You probably should look at buying out the SLK, assuming its well taken care of, and your wife likes it: even though the smart/responsible thing would be to buy a used econo-box (06 Civic maybe) to get you through the rough times.

Hi, I am a BMW evangelist, I have had at least 14 BMWs in the last 20 years, but this year, even though my personal finances are OK, I have some real estate investments that are worth 25% of buying price, I am negotiating with banks doing short sales, in the meantime, my credit is bad, and even though I have had at least 10 leases with BMW FS, all paid well and right on time, and still have one on a 2008 550i, BMW will not give me credit, not even on a pre-paid lease.

So, my wife's SLK lease is up in 6 weeks, and I need to buy a replacement, I am looking into a new or CPO 3 series, planning to use it until my credit is back, what model will be easier to unload (sell) in the short term with minimal loss? A sedan or a coupe? New or CPO?>>>>

These are the questions you need to ask yourself. How often do you have rear seat passengers. Do you ever need to have a 5th passenger. Is styling important. Do you want grey poplar trim. If you answer "often" to the first 2 questions you are better off with a sedan. If you answer "yes" to the questions 3&4, you should consider the coupe.(providig you answers to the first 2 questions was not often). BTW, the overall driving experience of the Coupe and Sedan are pretty much the same although the chassis of the coupe is somewhat more rigid.

CPO definately. Let somebody else eat 50% of the resale the first two years. I'd guess that a sedan would be easier to offload.

That being said, buying a new (to you) car when you have bad credit and seriously depreciating assets really sounds like a bad idea. You probably should look at buying out the SLK, assuming its well taken care of, and your wife likes it: even though the smart/responsible thing would be to buy a used econo-box (06 Civic maybe) to get you through the rough times.

I have been monitoring CPO prices and I can't find the 50% depreciation, 2007 328 and 335 are going for about 20% to 25% depreciation over a new one, it almost makes more sense to buy a new one.

Because I have cash, my personal finances are normal, I am still making same income, the problem is with some investments where property values are 25% of what they were in 2005. I do not have enough cash to cover that depreciation, but enough to buy a car, I am not ready to take the bus yet.

Wow. I would say coupe vs sedan is the least of your worries, but don't feel bad at all; my credit score at all three bureaus is above 800 and my bank is still giving me crap requiring a letter basically saying I won't be fired from my job in the next two years for a minor (IMHO) transaction.

However, it does sound like you are dangerously overleveraged if you do not have the ability to just buy the BMW cash and you are dealing with this kind of expensive stuff. I'd approach a private (non-BMW) bank (that is what I did) and just buy the thing with a ridiculously low LTV, say put 50% down and finance the rest. You will have a monthly payment at or below the lease, and own the car in a few short years (so you will never be in your current situation), and you'll always own enough of the car that the bank won't be worried.

Because I have cash, my personal finances are normal, I am still making same income, the problem is with some investments where property values are 25% of what they were in 2005. I do not have enough cash to cover that depreciation, but enough to buy a car, I am not ready to take the bus yet.

I have a 328i I need to get rid of - trade you for a highrise condo in Miami

If you only plan to keep the vehicle for a short period of tiem why not buy her something cheap - like not a BMW? Buy her a 2006 honda civic. Hell buy her a Ford. YOu anyway plan on offloading it. Ford is giving away amazing deals and since they are actually doing well you should not have a problem offloading it.

YOu'll save money no the car, the insurance, and won't take a big hit on the loss. For 4 months of car don't go crazy on spending.

Just my opinion. Other then that 4 door is easier to get rid of. CPO will make it so you take less of a cash loss, but check to see if the CPO warranty is transferrable to the third owner